Ulysses Quartet offers a program today of works illuminating the human experience of love from two very different perspectives. Anton Webern’s early Langsamer Satz portrays the boundless optimism and tenderness of young love, while Leoš Janáček’s String Quartet No. 2, Intimate Letters, paints a raw and painful image of a soul tortured by a powerful obsession with an unobtainable woman. Though only 23 years separate their respective compositions, the intervening world war and the turmoil within the artistic world in the early 20th century are evident in the stark stylistic and technical contrasts between the two works.
String Quartet No. 2, "Intimate Letters" Leoš Janáček (1854 – 1928) I. Andante – Con molto – Allegro II. Adagio – Vivace III. Moderato – Andante – Adagio IV. Allegro – Andante – Adagio
Written during the twilight of his career, Janáček’s Quartet No. 2 Intimate Letters is a fiery programmatic work which portrays Janáček’s obsessive infatuation with Kamila Stösslová. Janáček, 35 years her senior, met Kamila while on vacation in the summer of 1917. A correspondence of over 700 surviving letters to Kamila provides a glimpse into their unconventional relationship. While decidedly tonal, Janáček’s style of composition blends rich romantic harmonies with folk elements along with a uniquely 20th century voice. Janáček uses a technique of threading and transforming small musical units to convey a heightened sense of emotional tension.
In the opening, an eerie yet sensuous viola solo introduces the personification of Kamila. In the 3rd movement, a motivic cell begins with slow, repeated notes that evoke Janáček’s fantasy of being with Kamila, and the precipitous heart rate that follows—just one example of how tempo fluctuations and harmonic shifts can be seen as reflective of Janacek’s temperament. In another particularly temperamental section in the last movement, the second violin line recalls a motivic cell last heard in the first movement-long, drawn trilled notes that quickly condense into wild triplets. This line passes through other voices as the work hurls towards a frenetic end. Many revisions and editions surfaced during the evolution of the piece, yet some of Janáček’s own initial modifications were lost along the way. The inevitable disparities between old and new editions allow for greater interpretive license on the part of the performers. Notes by Colin Brookes
Classical Music | Music for Quartet
Leoš Janáček
String Quartet No. 2, "Intimate Letters" Play
Recorded on 11/05/2016, uploaded on 05/04/2017
Musician's or Publisher's Notes
Ulysses Quartet offers a program today of works illuminating the human experience of love from two very different perspectives. Anton Webern’s early Langsamer Satz portrays the boundless optimism and tenderness of young love, while Leoš Janáček’s String Quartet No. 2, Intimate Letters, paints a raw and painful image of a soul tortured by a powerful obsession with an unobtainable woman. Though only 23 years separate their respective compositions, the intervening world war and the turmoil within the artistic world in the early 20th century are evident in the stark stylistic and technical contrasts between the two works.
String Quartet No. 2, "Intimate Letters" Leoš Janáček (1854 – 1928)
I. Andante – Con molto – Allegro
II. Adagio – Vivace
III. Moderato – Andante – Adagio
IV. Allegro – Andante – Adagio
Written during the twilight of his career, Janáček’s Quartet No. 2 Intimate Letters is a fiery programmatic work which portrays Janáček’s obsessive infatuation with Kamila Stösslová. Janáček, 35 years her senior, met Kamila while on vacation in the summer of 1917. A correspondence of over 700 surviving letters to Kamila provides a glimpse into their unconventional relationship. While decidedly tonal, Janáček’s style of composition blends rich romantic harmonies with folk elements along with a uniquely 20th century voice. Janáček uses a technique of threading and transforming small musical units to convey a heightened sense of emotional tension.
In the opening, an eerie yet sensuous viola solo introduces the personification of Kamila. In the 3rd movement, a motivic cell begins with slow, repeated notes that evoke Janáček’s fantasy of being with Kamila, and the precipitous heart rate that follows—just one example of how tempo fluctuations and harmonic shifts can be seen as reflective of Janacek’s temperament. In another particularly temperamental section in the last movement, the second violin line recalls a motivic cell last heard in the first movement-long, drawn trilled notes that quickly condense into wild triplets. This line passes through other voices as the work hurls towards a frenetic end. Many revisions and editions surfaced during the evolution of the piece, yet some of Janáček’s own initial modifications were lost along the way. The inevitable disparities between old and new editions allow for greater interpretive license on the part of the performers. Notes by Colin Brookes
More music by Leoš Janáček
On an Overgrown Path I, They chattered like swallows
String Quartet No. 2, "Intimate Letters"
In the Mists
Pohadka (Fairy Tale)
Piano Sonata 1.X.1905, From the Street
Piano Sonata 1.X.1905, From the Street
String Quartet No. 1 "Kreutzer Sonata"
Moravian Folk Dances
On an Overgrown Path I, Our evening
On an Overgrown Path I, A blown-away leaf
Performances by same musician(s)
Langsamer Satz
Classical Music for the Internet Era™
Courtesy of International Music Foundation.